The Book of Stations

1. Mawqif 75 · The two seas and the knower between them

   See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 147, Damascus 1966, p. 148, Cairo, vol. 1, p. 133 (archive.org)

   ¶9
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   قَالَ تَعَالَى: «مَرَجَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ يَلْتَقِيَانِ، بَيْنَهُمَا بَرْزَخٌ لَا يَبْغِيَانِ».

   Quotes the Quran 55:19–20 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

   God Most High says: “He let the two seas flow out to meet; between them is a isthmus, and neither oversteps it” (Q 55:19–20).

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   ›About the vowels: added by AI; uncertain words are underlined

   The source of this text, a printed edition or a manuscript, has few or no vowel marks, as is usual for such texts. The vowels shown were added by AI and checked against an independent grammatical analyser; the few words where the two disagree are underlined as uncertain. Choose “Unvowelled” under Aa to read the letters alone.

2. ¶10
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   فَالْبَحْرَانِ الشَّرِيعَةُ وَالْحَقِيقَةُ.

   The two seas are the Law and the Reality.

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3. ¶11
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   وَالْبَرْزَخُ بَيْنَهُمَا الْعَارِفُ، فَلَا تَبْغِي الشَّرِيعَةُ عَلَى الْحَقِيقَةِ، وَلَا الْحَقِيقَةُ عَلَى الشَّرِيعَةِ.

   The isthmus between them is the knower, so the Law does not overstep against the Reality, nor the Reality against the Law.

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4. ¶12
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   فَهُوَ دَائِماً بَيْنَ ضِدَّيْنِ وَمُشَاهَدَةِ نَقِيضَيْنِ، يَنْفِي وَيُثْبِتُ، وَيَنْفِي عَيْنَ مَا أَثْبَتَ،

   So he is always between two opposites, beholding two contraries: he denies and affirms, and denies the very thing he affirmed.

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5. ¶13
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   لَايَسْتَقِرُّ بِهِ قَرَارٌ، وَلَا تَطْمَئِنُّ بِهِ دَارٌ، مُتَحَرِّكٌ سَاكِنٌ، رَاحِلٌ قَاطِنٌ،

   No resting place holds him and no dwelling gives him ease; he is moving and still, departing and staying.

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6. ¶14
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   فَهُوَ كَطَائِرٍ يَطِيرُ مِنْ غُصْنٍ اِلَى غُصْنٍ، وَالَّذِي طَارَ اِلَيْهِ؛ هُوَ الَّذِي طَارَ عَنْهُ.

   He is like a bird that flies from branch to branch, and the branch it flies to is the very one it flew from.

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7. ¶15
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   يُشَاهِدُ الشَّرِيعَةَ بِقَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى: «اعْمَلُوا فَسَيَرَى اللَّهُ عَمَلَكُمْ».

   Quotes the Quran 9:105 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

   He beholds the Law in the words of God Most High, “Act, and God will see your acts” (Q 9:105),

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8. ¶16
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   وَيُشَاهِدُ الْحَقِيقَةَ بِقَوْلِهِ: «لَا يَقْدِرُونَ عَلَى شَيْءٍ مِمَّا كَسَبُوا».

   Quotes the Quran 2:264 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

   and he beholds the Reality in His words, “They have no power over anything they have earned” (Q 2:264).

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9. ¶17
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   وَيُشَاهِدُ الشَّرِيعَةَ بِقَوْلِهِ: «فَخُذُوهُمْ وَاقْتُلُوهُمْ».

   Quotes the Quran 4:89 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

   He beholds the Law in His words, “Seize them and kill them” (Q 4:89, 4:91),

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10. ¶18
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    وَيُشَاهِدُ الْحَقِيقَةَ بِقَوْلِهِ: «فَلَمْ تَقْتُلُوهُمْ وَلَٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ قَتَلَهُمْ».

    Quotes the Quran 8:17 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

    and he beholds the Reality in His words, “You did not kill them, but God killed them” (Q 8:17).

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11. ¶19
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    وَيُشَاهِدُ الشَّرِيعَةَ بِقَوْلِهِ: «لَيْسَ لَكَ مِنَ الْأَمْرِ شَيْءٌ».

    Quotes the Quran 3:128 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

    He beholds the Law in His words, “Nothing of the matter is yours” (Q 3:128),

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12. ¶20
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    وَيُشَاهِدُ الْحَقِيقَةَ بِقَوْلِهِ: «إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُبَايِعُونَكَ إِنَّمَا يُبَايِعُونَ اللَّهَ».

    Quotes the Quran 48:10 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

    and he beholds the Reality in His words, “Those who pledge allegiance to you pledge allegiance only to God” (Q 48:10).

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13. ¶21
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    وَيُشَاهِدُ عُبُودِيَّتَهُ بِقَوْلِهِ: «إِنْ كُلُّ مَنْ فِي السَّمَٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ إِلاَّ آتِى الرَّحْمَٰنِ عَبْداً».

    Quotes the Quran 19:93 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

    He beholds his servanthood in His words, “There is no one in the heavens and the earth but comes to the All-Merciful as a servant” (Q 19:93),

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14. ¶22
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    وَيُشَاهِدُ رُبُوبِيَّتَهُ بِقَوْلِهِ: «إِنَّا كُلَّ شَيْءٍ خَلَقْنَاهُ بِقَدَرٍ». فِي قِرَاءَةِ الرَّفْعِ.

    Quotes the Quran 54:49 · text of the quotation verified against Tanzil

    and he beholds his own lordship, the knower’s, in His words, “Truly We created every thing by measure” (Q 54:49), in the reading with “every” in the nominative.

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15. ¶23
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    فَلِذَا الْعَارِفُ بَيْنَ نَارَيْنِ: نَارِ الشَّرِيعَةِ، وَنَارِ الْحَقِيقَةِ،

    That is why the knower stands between two fires, the fire of the Law and the fire of the Reality,

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16. ¶24
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    بَلْ بَيْنَ شِقَّتَيْ طَاحُونٍ، كُلُّ وَاحِدَةٍ تَدْفَعُهُ اِلَى الْأُخْرَى.

    or rather between the two stones of a mill, each pushing him towards the other.

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17. ¶25
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    فَالشَّرِيعَةُ تُطَالِبُهُ بِالْحَقِيقَةِ وَبِالشَّرِيعَةِ.

    For the Law demands of him both the Reality and the Law,

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18. ¶26
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    وَالْحَقِيقَةُ تُطَالِبُهُ بِالشَّرِيعَةِ وَبِالْحَقِيقَةِ.

    and the Reality demands of him both the Law and the Reality.

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19. ¶27
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    وَهَذَا هُوَ الِابْتِلَاءُ الَّذِي أَشَارَ اِلَيْهِ ـ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ـ بِقَوْلِهِ: «اَشَدُّ النَّاسِ بَلَاءً الْأَنْبِيَاءُ، ثُمَّ الْأَمْثَلُ فَالْأَمْثَلُ».

    This is the trial to which the Prophet, God bless him and give him peace, pointed when he said: “The people most sorely tried are the prophets, then the best after them, and then the best after those.”

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Translations, word glosses and term notes are AI-generated (Claude) and marked as such; no published translation is reproduced.Word analysis is automatic (CAMeL Tools), guided by the text's vowelling. How this text was established.